AVATAR
by Achalys
Summary: It's been 15 years since the day of Black Sun, and so much has changed. It is now obvious that one Avatar wasn't good enough...but will four be? :AU:Co-written:T for safety: DISCONTINUED
1. Prologue

**We own nothing.  
**

The Firelord.

It seemed so important, but the end of the comet was only the beginning of our worries. Everyone fought so hard that day. Sokka took down countless soldiers, despite their enhanced abilities and his lack of them; Toph fought with her usual ferocity, showing the remaining Dai Lee why the world called her the greatest earthbender in the world; Suki took down at least 6 of the fire nation tanks by herself; and Zuko's firebending, like all other firebenders, was tripled in power. Yet, even with all of the power that we displayed, it wasn't enough, and the only good thing that had come out of it was that Azula had finally been…Dealt with.

Zuko had been the one to do it, but he never told anyone how, or even admitted that he did it; he was just the last person to be with his sister, trapped in a engine room on her personal ship. He was the only one who had come out. At first, I was scared that he had died; he looked just like a ghost. Suki, although her power was great, was captured that day. It would be three years before anyone ever saw her again.

Nothing happened to Toph, nothing ever happened to her, but after that day she grew strangely silent. True, the occasional remark from her, which was way too few, was still sarcastic, but it seemed almost as if she had aged ten years in ten minutes. For a long time, she scared me.

Sokka didn't even know what had happened to his girlfriend until after it all had happened. I had been the one to tell him; I was the one who had been fighting alongside her. I don't think that he ever fully forgave me.

I tried to heal everyone that I could, every one of the fallen comrades around me, all crying in pain and agony. But I could only do so much.

And Aang…I honestly don't know. He tried to stop the comet, and failed, then flew into the throne room. He didn't even emerge until, well…a long time after the battle. He looked just the same as he had before he entered what I was feared would be the place of his death, except for the occasionally burn mark on his clothes. Everyone was relived, even if they, he, didn't show it. Until he sunk to his knees and cried out in pain like a scared child. My heart went out to him.

That was the third worst day of my life.

Three years later, everyone had recuperated, somewhat at least. Very few actually trusted that the Avatar could still save the world, since the Firelord, now with a new understudy, had taken over everything except a very few remote islands. That was where we were, but not all of us in one spot. We were in groups, except for Sokka who had gone with our father. He seemed to want to have nothing to do with Aang…or me.

So, I had been stuck with Zuko. Not my first choice, then, but we had bonded. We had become friends. And even…More than friends. I found that I loved almost everything about him. His stance, his voice, what he stood for, his eyes. He was so…intoxicating. I almost couldn't breathe when I was around him. He, just like his usual self, didn't fail to notice, and he confronted me about it after a while. Well, more like he kissed me. And we went a little further. I thought that I had made a mistake at the time, but now…I wouldn't trade what came out of that night for anything.

On the other side of the world, my two friends were doing the exact opposite. Always fighting, cursing each other, it was a never ending battle of tempers. I don't know what happened there, other than what I've been told. The fighting got worse as the "final" battle drew nearer. On the last night, everything came out. And… it ended up making them stronger. I could tell when we were reunited that something good had happened in their relationship, something very good.

But whatever joy we found, fate had a way of crushing it. Sokka rejoined us for the last battle, along with every other one of our friends that were still left. I had thought that we were going to win, I had told everyone that, believed it with all of my heart…Can you guess what happened?

More people died in that battle than any other that I had been in. But Sokka finally saw Suki on that day…Or what was left of her.

I'd like to think that I have a strong will, everyone does. I'd like to think that I'd be able to stand up against every power, physical or spiritual, and be victorious. I'd like to think that my friends could do same. I'd love to think that. But when reality sets in, it sets in hard. Suki's face was permanently twisted into rage and pain, permanently scarred with torture. Her body was so frail, yet still held the hostility of a wild  
beast, all impulse and no thought. So gone was the beautiful warrior that Sokka had loved, and had dreamed of rescuing, and in her place was something…Else. I had thought that she was just in shock, then. I hadn't understood, not fully. Not until she tackled me, who apparently in the way of her real target: Sokka. That was horrible, I refused to attack one of my best friends, no matter how twisted she had become. So, in order to save me and himself…

Sokka's sword was stained with blood of countless others, but her blood was the only blood that tainted it.

Everywhere, the battle was killing, killing both men and women…Children and the elderly…Friend and foe…Good and bad…Suki…Bato…King Bumi…The rest of the freedom fighters…Teo…Master Pakku…Appa…My father…

…Aang.…

In the end, nothing ever works out.

In the end, I left Zuko. In the end Toph ran away. In the end Sokka took over the South Pole, now as glorious as the north used to be. In the end the world tore itself to pieces, no matter what we did. In the end we survived. In the end…Maybe the world really was better without the Avatar.

* * *

"_Oh, how wrong you are, child. Can you not feel it? I have had great visions; visions of troubled pasts, and brilliant futures. Heed my words, you foolish woman! No more is there to be on Avatar; for it is too great of a burden. The spirits see that now. No, now the great powers shall be split! Four Avatars for four nations! And great shall be the world, in due time! And the Avatar's name shall have its honor restored! It shall be as I have foreseen it!"_

* * *

**Don't worry; I haven't forgotten about AU or anything!**

**This is a co-writing project that tonks-lupin524 came up with ALL BY HERSELF! I'm just doing the writing! So give her a big hand and go check her out! I COMMAND THEE!** 


	2. Introductions

**I own nothing.**

"…And, just like this, move your hands in a circular motion, letting the energies flow…" Katara said calmly, moving her hands in the soothing motion

At the bottom of the world, contrary to some uneducated people's beliefs, you would not fall off. No, in fact the South Pole held the newest city in the world. It was also one of the largest, second only to Ba Sing Se. And it was constantly being added on to, updated by the newest water benders. The ice city was considered to be the most beautiful in the world, if you could stand the cold. Unique and large architecture made up the homes and streets of the large city, fascinating to look at, bust constantly having to be re-done if the temperature got even a little above -30 degrees. The great city also was home to some great, famous people. All of them were heroes from the Water Tribe, of course. Sokka, the chieftain and famous general ruled the city, and all of the southern Water Tribe. His younger sister, the famous water-bending warrior Katara, served as a counselor and ambassador on several occasions. Most of her time, however, was spent teaching her children Kenai, Snow, and Irluk. The first of which she had the most problems with.

"…And, just like this, move your hands in a circular motion, letting the energies flow…" Katara said calmly, moving her hands in the soothing motion. She had done this a thousand times before, it seemed, and the familiarity comforted her. She was giving her oldest – Kenai – a healing lesson. He never seemed to get it, even if it was mainly for the females. One of her younger children, Irluk, had already gotten it, and he was only at the age of eight.

"Ugh! Why won't this work?!" Kenai stopped moving his hands as his mother had been and balled them into fists.

His dark hair, styled like the typical water-bender, was always shaggy and it would sometimes fall out of his already short 'wolf-tail'. His skin was lighter than most benders, although it was still pretty tan. He was tall, but he was not taller than his mother yet. His arms and legs were stronger than the rest of the kids his age; he always wanted to be stronger. He wore the usual parka of the Water-Tribe peoples, but his boots were black instead of brown and didn't wear any of the Water-Tribe accessories. His eyes were a sort of whisky color. He had never thought much about it, but some of the elders and gossiping ladies talked about it a lot, since his mother was so important. Some thought that his eye color meant that he'd do something important, like the northern princess Yue. Other's thought that Katara had gotten a strange curse, and that it had affected Kenai. No one on his family paid any attention to these crazy theories.

Katara pried open one of her closed eyes and replied calmly, "You're very tense, your form is too offensive. Think about the push-and-pull of the water, not the push-and-push." Her response to his outbursts always sounded the same _'too much anger' 'let it flow' 'your legs are too far apart, you're too offensive'_. The list went on.

"I know, mother!" Kenai's anger flared up. This broke his mother out of her trance.

"You will not talk to me that way, young man." She demanded, her voice low and dangerous. "You will not forget that I am not only your mother, but also your mentor."

"No, you're just a cranky old mom who wants her oldest to be as good as all of her younger prodigies!" His fists went high.

"What?! How dare you, you have no right-!"

He tried to cut her off, but her voice only grew louder and angrier. She had long ago learned to control her bending when she was mad, but she felt the small pool of water that she had been twirling turn to ice and drop to the ground.

"You will not treat your mother this way! You're not too old to be paddled, young man! Now leave, and go to your room. You will not have any dinner for this outburst." She sat down and un-froze her water, resuming her twirling. That signaled that she was done, and it was Kenai's cue to leave.

His fists and jaw clenched, he spun angrily on his heel and stormed out of his mother's large ice bedroom. The water-bending master sighed once he was gone, and stopped her swirling for a moment to caress her necklace. It wasn't her mothers; she had gotten a new one since then. It had twirl design that turned into a little ball at the end of each twirl. Altogether, it seemed to have a sort of flame pattern, but only after hours of looking at it. She Pursed her lips and resumed her twirling, leaving her son to his sulking.

Kenai growled low. Being the chief's sister had certain perks, like having your own house joined with the chieftain's palace, where her brother lived. His mother used to tell him stories of how, when she was little, the southern water tribe consisted of only five or six small igloos. Since then, however, the northern water tribe had helped re-build it, making the southern city just as lovely as their sister northern tribe had been. But that had been before it had been destroyed. But for the largeness of the city he was truly thankful, even if he had recently started causing some damage to it in his rage.

Every time that happened, his mother would yell, his father would rub his temples and sigh, calmly telling his wife to calm down, and his oldest younger sibling, Snow, would tease him. Oh, how he hated that child sometimes. She was the best out of all of Katara's children, the best bender out of all of them and the perfect princess. He usually couldn't take it when she displayed her bending powers, because she'd show off. And she was always bending. It made his eyebrows furrow just thinking about his younger sister. A girl wasn't even supposed to be that good at bending!

Well, besides his mother.

But he didn't want to think about it right then. He had always heard stories about how his mother was the greatest water bender, and that she had been the Avatar's girlfriend, but his mother always denied both. Kenai didn't think that she was woman enough to be with someone as powerful as the Avatar, honestly. She was too preachy. He didn't even think that she could be with that one rogue Fire nation leader that he had recently been hearing rumors about.

His friends had told him the rogue had decided years ago that he didn't like the way the nation was headed, and decided to take matters into his own hands. And apparently, he had managed to get half of the nation on his side. Kenai didn't really care. Let the fire nation tear itself apart. It had done the world enough trouble already.

His mother paddled him hard when he had mentioned that one night at dinner.

His uncle always agreed with him, though. He told Kenai stories of how the fire nation was nothing but a bunch of evil people who murdered and raped and se fire to whole world. Kenai doubted the last one; the southern water tribe would never let some small island nation set fire to its skies. Not like the northern had. But he took everything else that his uncle said to heart. He looked up to his uncle even more than he looked up to his own father, who was captain of all of the guard in the entire city.

Sokka had always treated him as a son, having none of his own. Kenai thought that he had been married at one point, when he was a small child, but when he had asked Sokka about it, his uncle had laughed.

"No," he had said. "Never been married. I'm a wild penguin, and I need my space!" He had joked.

But Kenai also liked spending so much time with his uncle because he didn't tolerate his mother that well. It made Kenai smile inside. She was always put in her place when his uncle was around; always reminded that she wasn't the one in charge. A female shouldn't ever be in charge.

Kenai, despite being high-up in the political places, only had one real friend. His name was Kirrlu, and it seemed that he was one of the only few who could actually tolerate Kenai's personality. He didn't say much (for who could when Kenai wanted to talk?) but when he did, he made Kenai feel like a three-year-old compared to Kirrlu's reasoning. Which he kind of was.

So, Kenai's life, for the most part, was pretty good. His father never bothered him with anything. He only taught Kenai how to fish. His mother nagged him, but was one of the most famous teachers in the world; she still refused to train almost everyone except for her children. The youngest siblings looked up to him, even if Snow was a show-off who was constantly nagging him and making fun if him. His uncle loved him like a son, and taught him many things about real life: especially the horrible ways of the Fire Nation. His best friend was always good company, and it was extremely easy for Kenai to vent his problems with Kirrlu. His training had been going well, although his mother refused to teach him some things that Kenai thought would make him just as good of a bender as his mother. But he knew that she would eventually, with enough persuasion.

Yeah, for living in the freezing part of the bottom of the globe, life was good.

* * *

The southern mountains of the Earth Kingdom were some of the tallest in the world, all covered in trees and grasses. Each of the mountains went uphill at a very slow pace, making them seem more like hills than actual mountains. But their height said otherwise, because eventually, after countless fields and forests and slow elevation, you would find yourself at the top of one of them, looking over what seemed to be all of the beautiful Earth Kingdom. Even the clouds would seem to be below you.

The view wasn't why Atari's mother had chosen this location for their home. No, the view her mother couldn't care less about. Mostly because her mother, Toph Be Fong, couldn't see the view. Atari had always felt bad for her mother because she couldn't see the flowers or the trees or the animals, or the clouds and the sky. Especially the clouds and sky. That's what Atari loved the best in the whole world. Her mother hated the air. Not breathing, necessarily. Just being up in the air. Everyone knew how her mother saw, so she guessed that it was common sense that she wouldn't ever want to be off of the ground.

But not Atari. She had discovered her special gift at a relatively young age. Her mother couldn't help at all with her gift, since it was pretty much the exact opposite as hers. But Atari didn't mind. She loved learning, no matter how slowly. She loved being able to bend the air around her, making the wing around her fiercer, even if only a little.

Yes, she loved being an air-bender.

"Atari! Get back on the ground." Atari's mother called from their house made into the very mountain. Toph had learned, Atari figured out, that when she couldn't sense her daughter's heart beat or footprints that she was floating in the air.

"Hang on, mom!" Atari laughed, trying in vain to figure out an old trick that Toph had said was one of her father's favorite old tricks. Atari was only successive in blowing herself about a foot in the air for a moment or two under some pocket of air that resembled nothing like a circle before dropping to the floor. She laughed loudly before calling out to her mother, "Ok! I'm coming!"

Atari had strange blend of blonde and brown for her hair, so she didn't technically have 'light brown' hair just every other one of her hairs were blonde. Her hair was only shoulder-length, and she had bangs that fell into her face, which was one thing that annoyed her to death - and she was always blowing them out of her eyes - but she never cut them. Her eyes were a dark green, the color that her mother would have had if she hadn't have been blind. Her frame was small; also something that she had gotten from her mom, but she was sort of scrawny, something that her mom demanded came from Atari's dad. She wore plain black slippers common of girls in the Earth Kingdom, and long green shorts. She also had on a plain mint-colored undershirt and a breezy beige-greenish over-tunic that was plain except for the Earth Kingdom symbol at the bottom. There was nothing extraordinary about her skin, but in the summer, when she was outdoors a lot (like now) a few freckles would pop up along her nose. Atari had been told that she had gotten her freckles from her father, so they were one of her favorite parts.

Atari's mother had never told her that it made her both very sad and very happy that Atari was an air-bender. But Atari figured it out by herself. It was all in her mother's eyes.

Atari didn't have any friends, really, besides the random squirrel or bird. Her mom let her meet a badger mole once, but she didn't like the stuffy caves that they lived in. There was no sky there at all. But she didn't mind; she wasn't ever lonely. Not like her mom.

Their life was the best to Atari, no one could reach their home; Toph blew anyone who came within a mile of their home ten miles high into the air. No, they lived in paradise. Or at least, so Atari thought. She loved people, to be sure, but was perfectly happy with living alone with just her mother. She could tell her mother was different, and it saddened her, because she loved her mother dearly.

Toph didn't like people per se, but more of she liked certain people and missed them. She had told her daughter stories of when she was younger – and stupider – and how nothing had stood in her way even then. Back when Atari's dad was still alive. She could tell when her mother thought of him; her eyes would glaze over and a small smile appeared. It wasn't her usual smile; it was one that Atari had only ever seen on her mother when she thought of him. It was a sort of smirk, like she knew something that Atari didn't.

For the most part, they both loved the outside. But for different reasons, Atari knew. Her mother loved the familiarity of the ground and dirt in-between her toes; Atari loved the air and freeness. You could say that she was sort of claustrophobic.

So, the two most opposite people that you could think of to be mother and daughter lived there, in there own hide away in the side of their mountain, away from all other people and concerns.

* * *

The circus always was, by nature, a very strange thing. Everything seemed backwards there; men with very oddly-shaped heads, women who grew beards (and weren't supposed to), and clowns who – even if they acted happy – were always suicidal. Completely and utterly backwards and, according to most, not even worth the thought. Jai would be like most people…If he hadn't been born to a ring-master.

It was almost predictable, if you thought about it. Jai was a very quiet and critical boy by nature, so of course his mother would be a ring-leader. It made perfect sense, in a 'the spirits have a very bad sense of humor' way.

He had been born most like his father in almost every way. He was even an earth-bender like his father, Haru. It seemed as if he had gotten everything from his father - except that his mother, Ty Lee, had insisted on making him taking gymnastics lessons all of his life. He was still taking them, despite the looks that he gave his mother.

The bad looks never messed up any of his looks, though. Maybe that was why his mother could ignore them so easily. His big grey eyes resembled his mother's, but he had gotten almost everything else in his looks from his father's side. His built, although not extremely big, was firm and tall. His mother was constantly telling him of how he needed to eat more, but in his opinion, he ate just fine. He was strong, but his strength was most like a runner's – strong but lean and not that showy. He wore plain brown pants with black boots, with a plain dark green undershirt and black vest. His mother always distressed over his lacking of color wardrobe. His short dark brown hair was just long enough to fall into his eyes, but he never let it get any longer than that.

If you didn't know him well, Jai seemed almost mute. His own mother hadn't heard any more than 50 words from him his entire life. His father was in the Earth Kingdom military most of the time, so he barely even saw him. But even then their family, no matter how strange, was a close one.

He had never had any desire to get out and see the world – he was quite content to read about them in his books – but he had the undeniable urge to leave the circus. And he would, in a few years when he qualified for The School for Gifted Benders. It was a college that only the most educated got into; despite its name which suggested that you had to be a bender. Of course, you did, but you didn't exactly have to be…Excellent. This was perfect for Jai. He was good…But his father hadn't taught him anything of the master's level yet.

"Jai! Time for your lesson!" Ty lee called from the main tent, counting on his excellent hearing from all the way across the circus.

Unfortunately, he heard almost everything.

But his mother _had_ taught him a few good things, however. The hearing had come in handy numerous times in bending. He could pick up the slightest shuffle of feet on the ground. Of course, there were limits as to what he could do, but his abilities were extremely impressive anyway. His accursed flexibility came in handy, too. It added extra edge to his bending; his style was extremely rare, or so his father had told him. Few other people had ever mastered earth-bending by being so flexible. Of course, Jai hadn't mastered it yet, but still.

He was close enough.

* * *

"Good! Good! You are getting better by the day, my young student!" An old voice came from across the large courtyard. The old man's voice held age, but most certainly was not tired or weary; it actually had its own sort of energetic energy to it.

"Thank you, Master." A young teenaged girl said thankfully, bowing elegantly to her old master.

"Oh, Zephira, forget all of that old banter. I'm your great uncle, for spirit's sake! You don't have to bow to me." Iroh laughed both hands on the walking stick that he had started carrying everywhere shortly after great niece had been born. No one doubted that he didn't need it; everyone knew that he just liked the respectable look that the glossy wooden-carved cane gave him.

Zephira Smiled slightly. "But you deserve respect, Uncle." She demanded sweetly, bowing again before going back and starting back to doing the practice stances that Iroh had directed to her.

Zephira's hair was long and dark, but it was wavy, and she liked keeping up in a bun while she practiced or when she was working. Otherwise, she liked to keep her thick mane unrestricted. Her eyes were dark, but you could see the dark blue color if you looked up-close. Her built skinny, but she wasn't without some curves. There was nothing spectacular about her height; she was taller than her great-uncle, but shorter than her father. But there was something about how she stood; it commanded respect and obedience. Ker skin was light, but slightly darker than the average fire-nation. She wore the usual colors of her nation, but her clothing style – while regal – wasn't as stuffy as it had been back when her father was young. She still wore the boots, but the pants were breezier, and looser. So were the sleeves, although she tied them close around her wrists. She wore finger-less gloves and the usual red, gold-trimmed, sleeve-less tunic with the high collar. Nothing special, but at the same time, it gave her the regal elegance that someone in her position was both desired and unexpected.

"That's enough training for today, Zephira." Iroh chuckled as he made his way over to her, his cane making a clicking sound as he strolled across the stone courtyard. "You push yourself too hard. You'll end up like me if you keep at it." He winked his old eye at her.

Zephira Stopped and bowed, smiling. "All of the more reason to do it." She complemented him, and walked with him to the other end of the courtyard.

They lived in a large beach house that had been her grandmother's a long time ago. It also served as the head-quarters for the "Rouge" side of the civil war. The war had been going on for several years, but this was the first that Zephira – now being old enough – could actually help the effort. Her father was in charge, and she learned a great deal about leading from him. He was, of course, the famous exiled prince Zuko.

Things hadn't really gotten better or worse for them lately. On thing had been keeping all of the rouges on edge, though. The Firelord, as everyone knew, had a new apprentice, but so far – even after 15 years – the Student's identity had remained unknown. Zuko's worst fear was that it was someone just like Azula.

Zephira, not ever having to meet her deceased aunt, didn't feel the same fear that anyone who had met Azula felt. But she did feel the burning hate for the unknown person that only she and a few others felt.

They had killed her mother. Mai had died just after Zephira had turned 13. Mai had been sent on some important mission, Zephira couldn't remember what. She had supposedly made enough of a fuss as to bring the new 'Student' out. From what Zephira had heard from the only survivor, her mother had challenged him for whatever it was that she was trying to do, and had lost. That Student was the one person that she really and truly hated, and she looked forward to frustrating their attempts at anything and everything that she could. She wanted to make sure that he paid for her mother's death ten-fold.

Only Iroh knew about those feelings, and he discouraged them. "When in battle – and life –" he said, "You need to keep your personal wrong-doings out of your thoughts. Having your wits about you is essential."

While Zephira agreed with him on the last point, she had always had trouble letting go of personal offences. And murder was more than an offence.

"Father." Zephira called as she and Great-uncle Iroh entered the lowest room in the mansion – the planning room. Every inch of their battle against the Firelord was mapped out there.

Zuko looked up from a large map with a bunch of markings and numbers on it. You could hardly even see the actual map on there anymore. "Zephira, Uncle." He greeted, sparring a small smile.

Iroh nodded in greeting and leaned on his stick. "How's it going, Nephew?" He inquired.

Zuko's lips pursed, and he began his lengthy report on how their efforts were going. At first, Zephira's head spun. There were so many statistics, so many details. But after a few minutes, her business side kicked in and everything started making sense. She wouldn't have to actually make any decisions, but she absorbed any and all information that she could; there would be a time when she would be the one making the decisions, and she'd be ready.

She was going to make sure of it.

**Chapter 1, as promised! Review, review, review peoples!**

**All the credit for the ideas, character, and everything except for the writing goes to tonks-lupin524! Thank you!**


	3. Unwelcome Visitors

"_Keeeenaiiiiii….Keeeenaiiii…wake uuuup, Kenai! You're going to get in trooouuuble!"_

Kenai's eyes fluttered open, wretched out of his sleep by his very obnoxious little sister, Snow. The blue lights of their large ice-house made him squint at first; the lighting could be surprisingly harsh when someone wakes up. It was something to do with the way the sun shone through certain parts of the large ice castles; it was all done expertly, done with the purpose of creating a unique lighting which almost never required any other sorts of lights. Unfortunately, none of the architects ever considered the harshness of waking up in one.

"Keeeenaiii, wake up! Wake up, wake up, wake _uuuup_!" Snow continued to shake her older brother. Her mother had given her the task of getting her eldest's lazy butt up and out of bed. Snow took her job very seriously.

"I'll give you a wet-willy!" She threatened, taking off her mitten and licking her pinky, making sure that it was completely slobber-covered.

"Gah!" Kenai shot up, almost knocking over his 12-year-old sister. "Don't you dare!" He shouted, covering his ears.

Snow, after recovering from almost being trampled by Kenai, shrugged and tossed her braid over her shoulder. "Mom says that you need to get up, and that if you don't you'll get in trouble."

Snow was short, and was almost the spitting image of her mother when she had been the same age. She had the long braid, the blue eyes so common to the water tribes, and the same tanned skin. But there were no "hair loopies" in her hair; that was something that she didn't like. There was something about her, though; something that made Kenai think "snake". Of course, she _was_ his little sister, so that didn't really mean anything.

Kenai rolled his eyes. "Whatever, get out." He motioned towards his room's door.

Snow shrugged "Whatever." and headed out of his room.

Kenai groaned. Today was another lesson with his mother, so he was sure that he wouldn't get to see anyone that he actually liked that day. Figured.

Pulling himself out of bed, he changed his parka and pulled on his boots. He made his bed and put his hair back into that oh-so-common "warrior's wolf tail" hairstyle that he was so proud to wear. It showed his superior heritage.

Right off of his room was a hallway, his sibling's rooms on the left side. At the end of the hall, it opened up into their main room/entrance, which split off to the right into a separate "tea" room. It was some pointless tradition brought over by the fire nation. Tea was pointless.

Exiting their home, he immediately entered the ice palace, since their house was attached to the western side. The hallways of the palace were huge, with pillars on both sides and the open air on both sides as well. The other side was lined with crystal-looking lights. He didn't really know what they were, but they served as illumination when the whole "natural lighting" thing failed. Usually, that only happened at night.

It just so happened that as while Kenai was walking towards the main hall, where his mother likely was, he spotted his friend Kirrlu leaning against the thick ice railing that escorted a long stair case up a level to where he was.

'Great!' Kenai thought to himself. 'There's Kirrlu; I'm sure mom would get over herself if I was just a little bit late…'

"Kirrlu!" He called down to his friend, who immediately spun around and waved and then settled back in his original position.

He rushed down the stairs to greet his friend, who was apparently watching something with great interest. "Hey Kirrlu, what's up? Can you believe that my mother is so annoying?! She wakes me up an hour earlier than usual and demands that I go and say 'hi' to her! I swear, sometimes…" He trailed off as he noticed for the first time what Kirrlu was watching so intently. Down a few levels, in a enormous courtyard that marked the entrance to the ice palace, stood rows and rows of people, all in some of the fanciest parkas that Kenai had ever seen. They were lined up, all stiff as stones, in front of the palace entrance. Kenai's uncle stood up front and in the middle, and he recognized his mother to his left. Several other advisors stood to his right.

Kenai wondered for a moment why they were all lined up in front of the palace in such fancy and traditional garb, until he noticed another group of people, walking up from the docks. The first and last rows were waterbenders, all dressed as ornately as the ones he had been staring at before. But between the rows of waterbenders, came five other rows. The people in those rows – all walking two-by-two – had completely different clothing on.

They were Fire Nation.

They didn't look as if they were coming to conquer; how could you with ten men? They looked dwarfed by the largeness of the city and the freezing temperatures, Kenai noticed, making him more than a little smug. He hoped that his uncle let them know how powerless that they were here.

There was one, though, who didn't look so dwarfed. Freezing, maybe, but not dwarfed. He was in the back, dressed in some old fire nation solider uniform like the rest of them, but he didn't shrink like the others were. Though, now that he thought of it, that one solider was shorter than the rest of them. He hoped that he'd learn his place soon.

"Kirrlu…" Kenai muttered, stunned. He hadn't thought that they would even dare ever come back.

His friend just nodded silently.

"Is this why my mother called me so early?" The thought hit him.

Kirrlu thought for a moment, and then nodded, confirming to Kenai that he thought that that was right.

Kenai frowned, suddenly really bummed that he had missed his opportunity to put fear in the hearts of those soldiers.

"Do you know which side of the civil war that they are from?" He asked, not really that curious, but he wanted to know if their leader had tried to kill them all or not. Well according to the stories that he had heard, both sides had at one point attacked the South Pole, but if his mother was correct then one of the sides wouldn't ever think off doing it again. Not if they weren't totally stupid, anyway.

Kirrlu shrugged and shook his head, indicating that he had no idea.

Kenai groaned. "Right."

His mom was going to _kill_ him for not being there; Snow had been…Right. Ugh, he squirmed just _thinking_ that.

The people in the lower courtyard bowed to each other, the fire nation first then the water tribe. The solider next to the curious one in the back stepped forward, past all of the other soldiers. The curious one was right behind him. It appeared as if the one that the curious one followed was the one who was in charge. The lead soldier approached Kenai's uncle and mother and bowed yet again, the curious one following suit. The water siblings bowed back, only their bow wasn't as low as their guest's. They exchanged a few words which neither Kenai nor Kirrlu could hear, and then Katara took a step forward and embraced the soldier, who actually turned out to be shorter than her.

"What?!" Kenai exclaimed, flabbergasted. "Why is mother hugging that soldier?!" He paused. "That _fire nation_ soldier!"

Kirrlu just continued to watch the scene play out.

Katara and the lead soldier pulled apart and held each other at arms length, looking each other up and down. They exchanged a few more un-heard words and then let go of the other's forearms. The curious one, as well as Kenai's uncle, made no move to do anything. They simply watched the water tribe ambassador and fire nation soldier embrace and let go. Sokka motioned for the soldier and his group to enter the ice palace, and retreated up the steps slowly, as if daring everyone else to go any faster than him.

The fire nation soldiers, all visibly more relaxed, made no move to go any faster than the Chieftain, however. They all seemed to be content to simply be there without hostilities.

The water tribe nobles and guards that had also been part of the welcome followed their Chieftain, every last one of them with the same air of superiority that their Chieftain had had. All except for Kenai's mother, who escorted the lead soldier up, arm linked in his, almost as if to support him. The curious one followed close behind.

Kenai jumped up from the railing and sprinted towards the main hall, the hoping to his mother to the Chieftain's throne room. Maybe his mother would get the idea that he had been waiting there for a while, and that was why he had missed the greeting of the fire nation scoundrels.

"Bye Kirrlu!" He called back to his silent friend, who just waved back.

Twisting and turning through the ice palaces many hallways and passages, Kenai made it to the throne room right before his mother walked in. His uncle was there, but he knew that he hadn't noticed that Kenai hadn't been present just a moment before.

The throne room was large and circular, all covered in the blue lighting that was common in the palace. There were thick, round columns of ice around the walls of the grand room, each column with its own light generating from it. A long, thick ice bench ran around the entire room, except at the very end of the room, where it stopped and a large chair was raised off the ground, two huge steps leading up to it. All of the seats were covered in white fur from arctic bears and the sort. A very large and beautiful ice chandelier hung from the middle of the room, adding even more glamour to the round room.

Kenai took his place on the bench, next to where his mother sat, to his uncle's left.

"Kenai," His mother hissed as she approached him. "Where were you?"

Kenai swallowed. "I was…here, waiting for you." He fibbed.

She eyed him, and he could tell that she didn't really believe him. "You and I will have a talk after this is all over, Kenai."

Kenai was about to talk back, to reassure her that he had been sitting there the whole entire time, but he was cut off by his mother turning away from him to tend to the old man and the curious one. How annoying.

Everyone took their respective seats: the aristocrats in their sections, the chieftain in his chair, and even the fire nation scum were seated in a section reserved for visiting officials. Kenai's mother sat among them, next to the old one. That stunned and alienated many of the water tribe in that room, including her own son.

"She should be sitting next to her boy," Kenai heard an official whisper.

"I agree," whispered another. "She should not lower herself to sit with those...those…" The official apparently couldn't find the right word to describe their unexpected guests. But Kenai could.

'Brutes, beasts, animals, murderers…' Kenai finished the official's sentence in his head.

No one dared talk once everyone was seated and Sokka started surveying the room. All breaths were held; well, most breaths were held. Kenai, his mother, and the old fire nation soldier seemed unfazed by Kenai's Uncle's stares. The curious one looked as if he was about to shrink into his seat, err, ice block.

"Fire nation," Sokka addressed the guests. "You have not made it known to us as to why you're here." His face was perfectly still, except for his mouth, which was kept carefully unexpressive. "We are at your service…to a limit." He nodded slightly, his voice still devoid of any and all emotion. "So what is it?" He finished.

The old on stood up very slowly, as if the weight of a thousand years hung from his shoulder-pads. Kenai's mother reached up to help him, but a wave from his hand dismissed the offer. He suddenly looked like he was about to explain something to a child; his eyes were pressed together tightly and his eyes made him look half-asleep. When he spoke, however, it contradicted everything that his appearance said about him.

"Chieftain," He addressed his host with a voice that was even mightier than Kenai's Uncle's could be. "I come have here today to ask for your help. As you know, our nation is in great peril; what the end of The Great War didn't destroy, this civil war has." He paused and let his eyes sweep over the circular room. His gaze lingered on Kenai for a moment…Or was that just his imagination? "I am not asking for supplies," He said proudly, almost like he could read their minds and was insulted by the very thought. "I am requesting that you give us two squadrons of waterbenders."

Silence filled the entire room. All-in-all, two squadrons weren't much, only a handful of people. But it was the fact that there actually was something that the oh-so mighty fire nation was asking for. They were admitting that they needed help. Kenai almost laughed, but the curious one caught it. His helmet spun towards him, and Kenai knew that whoever was behind that mask was glaring. He glared back.

"What would we get in return?" Sokka considered. Kenai tore his gaze away from the curious one to stare incredulously at his uncle. Surely he wouldn't even consider this old man's request?!

The old man nodded. "We are prepared to give you enough crops worth the two squadrons and their families for two months. If you accept, the food is already on the ship that we came in on." He reassured.

Kenai's uncle nodded. A dozen men's lives for food worth ten times that. "Very well, we agree. We will give you two units to do with as you please. Once they enter your service, however, they will be considered fire nation soldiers." It was good business.

The old man looked twenty years younger then, and he even cracked a smile as he bowed down low to their Chieftain. "Thank you," He straightened up, and the rest of the room rose as Sokka rose.

Kenai stood perfectly still. His uncle had agreed to let _ten_ people desert him and their nation! His mother seemed to be just as surprised, as well, Kenai noticed.

"Mother!" Kenai ran up to her, and tried to make her pull back, so that he could talk to her without the company of the old one.

"Yes, Kenai?" She asked, sensing what was probably coming.

"What is uncle thinking?!" He whispered harshly. " Sacrificing our warriors to their so-called _'cause'_!" Kenai made parenthesis with his fingers in the air to emphasize his point.

"I…Don't know," His mother confessed, a mixed look on her face. "I didn't think that he would do it." She paused. "But I'm glad that he did."

"What?!" His voice rose slightly, still aware of the 'enemy' a few steps in front of him. "Why would you want our people to get killed for _them_?!"

Katara stopped dead in her tracks. "They're not asking for a whole battalion, Kenai. We don't need this food, either, but if these people that we're sending will make a difference and stop their war, then I think that it's worth it. They've more than paid for the wrongs that they did to the world." Her tone was final.

Kenai knew that he wouldn't be able to get through to his mother. "Whatever," He mumbled and let her go catch up with that old guy that she had clung to ever since they had arrived.

Sokka went in front, back to that courtyard where Kenai had first seen them. Everyone seemed a bit more relaxed – even the fire nation soldiers – much to Kenai's annoyance.

The small details were worked out on the slow trip down to the courtyard, and by the time that they got there, all of the other aristocrats had dispersed.

"Thank you once again," The old man, Kenai's mother had called him Iroh, bowed to Sokka once they were at the entrance of the courtyard. "But I need to retire tonight. You may come aboard at any time and take your food, but I'm afraid that I will need to leave by dawn tomorrow."

"Of course," Kenai's uncle bowed back slightly.

Iroh nodded and turned with the rest of his company to leave. The curious one, who had stuck to his side like glue, stared in his direction for a moment and then turned with the old man to retreat back to their ship. Well, it wasn't actually retreating, but Kenai liked to think that it was. They'd be leaving in the morning, and then he could get back to his normal life with his annoying sister and his horrible mother. Woohoo for him.

Kenai stayed back and let his mother escort the group to their ship; he was not about to be seen in public with them. If his mother would, that was her problem.

Apparently, the same thought was going through his uncle's thoughts as well, for he was not far behind Kenai as he went up the ice steps. Out of respect for his chieftain, Kenai paused and let Sokka go ahead of him once he realized that he was behind him, but his uncle only fell into step beside him.

"Kenai," he addressed his nephew. His voice was low and quiet, as if he was afraid that someone might hear what he was about to say. "I am going to be sending you with one of the squadrons."

Kenai stopped dead in his tracks. That meant leaving the water tribes. That meant going to war. That meant serving the _fire nation_. None of those would do.

"…What?" He momentarily forgot his uncle's rank. "Uncle, how could you?!" He wasn't even aware that he was whining.

Sokka nodded patiently, and put his arm around Kenai, continuing up the steps. "Let me be clearer. You are going as a spy, to tell me what they are going to do with our troops and why. You will retain your water tribe nationality status, but the others won't. And they won't know that you're special or why you're there. They'll think that your trying to be nice a help another nation in need, even if it is the fire nation. Let them think that; make them think that." He paused once they got to the top. "I need you to get close to their leaders – minus the old man – and tell me everything that you hear. Can I count on you?" His tone was sure and commanding, but still quiet. They both knew that he couldn't say no.

"Of course, uncle," Kenai bowed slightly. " But what about my mother? My father? Surely neither one would let me go on this 'mission'."

"Your father will think the same as everyone else, and your mother…I'm sure that she won't oppose. It's service for your country, and how can she stand in the way of that?"

Kenai grinned. "I guess that she can't." He loved it when his uncle put his mother in her place.

Sokka grinned and took one long look at Kenai's face, taking in the straight nose and pointed chin. All-in-all he really did look sort of exotic, with his different eyes. He'd miss the boy, that much was certain. "Good luck, then. I will not speak directly to you again until after you leave." He removed his arm from his nephew's shoulders.

Kenai bowed low. "Goodbye, uncle."

"Goodbye, Kenai."

xXx

** Well, thats chapter 2 for ya! Tell me what you think, and whatever!  
And thank tonks-lupin524 for having such amazing ideas for stories!!!  
Until next time!**


	4. Oh, my darned constitution!

The docks of the Water Tribe city were large and even colder – if it was possible – than farther into the city, it being right next to the water and all. The ice around there was slightly more slippery due to fishermen hauling the slimy, squirming fish in and out of port. Said fishermen took up most of the docks, and many had stalls where they sold their fresh produce. The fire nation ship, therefore, with its black metal stood out against all of the wooden boats surrounding it. The fire nation stood with their backs to their ship, each trying not to slip and make a fool of themselves in front of their once-enemies.

The twelve "brave, strong" water tribe warriors stood in a row, all stiff and in full water tribe uniform. They each held spears and the traditional crimson marks upon their forehead. A dark blue specially woven traditional scarf was wrapped around each of their necks and was pulled up to their noses, so that they had no identity; they were only soldiers. That was a part of their custom; almost like faceless creatures bred for fighting and dying for their country. Which they practically were. You were not supposed to talk to one of them once they were in complete uniform unless you were in charge of them, or the Chieftain.

Sokka surveyed the men, his gaze not resting on any of them for long. Soon, these men would be traitors. All but one had volunteered, not including his nephew, who hadn't actually volunteered either. The entire group – minus Kenai – was either in trouble with their commanders, or would've been banished anyway, eventually.

Several other officials stood on both sides of the Chieftain, including his sister and her husband. The husband seemed to be indifferent, but Sokka guessed that he was proud that his country's soldiers were being called on for help with by another nation. But his pride was not singled out on his son, and he could tell. He probably didn't even know that his son was among those to be leaving.

His sister, he knew, did. She stood somewhere over to his left, and her stance was one of one barely in control of herself. Her fists were clenched, and her head held a little too high. She wasn't proud, Sokka noted, she was furious. Obviously, she hadn't told her husband, but Sokka couldn't figure out why. Maybe she hadn't known before but Kenai's whiskey-colored eyes had given it away? Well, it didn't really matter one way or the other. His sister wouldn't – couldn't – get in the way. Not now. He was confident that Kenai would do whatever he said, and if it turned out the those dogs were up to something, he knew that he could trust his nephew to give him accurate information about it. Unless, of course, he was killed.

"…You men here are making the ultimate sacrifice." An old priest addressed the men. He looked like he would blow away in the wind, he was so frail, but his voice boomed up to the heavens. "You are leaving your homes, your families – if you have them – and your country for men and women that you've never met before,"

'_They make it sound as if these men are going out of the goodness of their hearts.' _

" You don't know what dangers you face, or if you'll ever see our beautiful cities ever again, but keep these words close to your heart:" The priest paused, his bones shaking but his face serine. "_Amat Victoria curam_; Victory favors those who sacrifice!" The old man finished and bowed to the men, then bowed to their chieftain, and then to their guests.

Sokka, knowing that it was his turn to say something, stepped up in front of the small group of men, his most trusted advisers to right behind him. His sister wasn't among them. The adviser's names, in order of his most to least favored were Seung, his most trusted adviser, and a good friend; Da-Xia, the old war hero who was always against another war; and the beautiful Hei, who was known for her ruthlessness. They each stood in their places, behind their leader, while everyone waited for him to make a speech.

"…" Sokka stared down each of them. In his eyes, all but one were already traitors. "Go with our respect." His voice boomed, confident, authoritative, and final.

The warriors bowed and turned towards the fire nation scum, bowing to them as well. They had no trouble keeping their balance on the slick ice.

"_Aeternum Vale_…" Came the tired old voice of the priest. None of them heard it.

-

Kenai's stomach curled and flipped as the ship rocked back and forth…back and forth…back and – well, you get the idea. Despite the fact that he had lived by the water almost all of his short life, he had never been out on the open ocean. He never had even had the chance to complete the rite of passage into manhood; his father never had the time and his uncle was too important to take him. What Kenai hadn't considered about this trip was just this: the ride over there.

A few of his fellow "brave men" sat in the corner, quietly playing some form of card game. One or two were sleeping in the small, hard bunks that had been provided. Most, however, were just sitting there, either feeling fear, or desperation.

But Kenai was pretty sure that he was the only one who was seasick.

Heh, imagine that. A _Water tribe_ member _seasick_!

Unfortunately, He did not have to imagine his breakfast coming up. Bolting out of the door, he rushed up the stairs and up onto the deck, where he then presumed to cough all of the contents of his stomach over the side of the iron ship. Lovely.

Kenai let his head just hang there for a minute, unsure if he was done throwing up, and very sure that he would fall over if he let go of the railing. The icy waves beneath him both calmed and nauseated him. They reminded him that they were still in his home nation, but at the same time…That swooshing motion was really very…sickening. After one more moment of staring at it, his stomach decided to dump the rest of its contents.

"Hmm…You certainly have a weak constitution."

Kenai wrenched his head up to look at the person to his left. It was…A fire nation soldier? But it was a girl! Were girls soldiers? Was the fire nation so barbaric as to use their women for soldiers?! The girl's helmet was off, and her hair was in a bun, but her face was twisted in an _'I'm so superior to you since I don't get sea sick'_ look. How dare a fire nation give him that kind of smug look, let alone a woman!

He was about to spit back a venomous comment, but was suddenly occupied with dry heaving. The girl chuckled lightly next to him.

"You should keep your eyes on the horizon, and see if that helps. Staring down and the water won't, that's for sure." She offered helpfully.

"…I don't need advice from a _fire nation_ solider!" He spat at her once he got a grip on himself and his stomach. "And I'm _not_ seasick; I just ate a bad batch of sea prunes this morning!" The ecstatic feeling of yelling at fire nation scum was somewhat dampened by the struggle of keeping himself from leaning back over the railing.

The girl looked only a little taken aback. "Hey, I was just trying to help..." She shook her head, a half smile twisted on her face.

"Well I don't _need_ any." He barked back.

"Obviously," The girl turned to leave, but stopped abruptly, as if a thought had just occurred to her."You know," She started softly, turning back to face the sick, red-faced boy. "The Great War ended a long time ago."

Kenai scowled. "Yeah, but you're still all the same. You can't even keep your own country together." His words spit hot venom at her, and he saw that he struck a nerve.

"We're doing the best that we _can_ for our country." She stalked back and jabbed a long, slender finger into the side of Kenai's shoulder.

"No, the _best_ thing that you could do for country would be to wipe yourselves off of the map and save _us_ the trouble." It suddenly occurred to him that it might have been better for his health and his mission if he had kept his mouth shut. Not only was he mostly likely about to receive a punch in the gut, but his uncle had also given him strict orders to let the barbarians think that he was sympathetic to their cause. She was, in all likelihood, to go to her higher-ups and inform them of his less-than-friendly behavior. He was, in a sense, under them after all.

_'Oops,'_

The girl seized his collar and jerked him up off of where he had still been slightly bent over the railing. "How _DARE_ you," She hissed, malevolence evident in her voice. "You have _no right_! You worthless _SWINE_!" She shoved him away, as if trying to throw him to the floor. Fortunately Kenai, being a water bender, had excellent balance, and managed to keep some of his footing.

"I-" She looked like she was going to throw him overboard, but the look of rage dissipated just as abruptly as it had appeared. All that was left was contempt. "You..." She clenched her fists tightly. "You...Don't matter." She gritted her teeth and stomped off.

Kenai wasn't sure if he should've felt more insulted either by the fact that she had called him a pig, or by the fact that she had told him that he did not matter. The 'I'm going to hurl my lunch' feeling had been replaced by a 'I'm going to breath fire all over the girl' feeling. For one moment, he wished that he had been born a fire bender, so that he could beat her to a pulp. Not that he felt that he couldn't do that with water bending, but it was just slightly more satisfying to think about her burning than drowning. His mother had always said that he would've been a better fire bender, after all.

-

The great, retired "Dragon of the West" Iroh sat quite comfortably on a scarlet cushion up on the bridge, playing Pi-Sho with the ship's Capitan, who had a moment to spare. His strategy had been purely defensive at first, so that he could see how well his opponent played. Although the Capitan's moves weren't anything new, he used them in an admirably imaginative way. The chuckling old man had to admit that his partner had some skills.

_'Much better than playing with my nephew,'_ He thought happily, as he shifted the position of one of his pieces. _'He never did have much of a knack for this sort of thing.'_

For a little while the Capitan held up his defensives, but Iroh knew that he would prevail in the end, as usual. He was never really challenged unless playing against one of his fellow White Lotus members, and even then he usually won. It was just one of the reasons why he was Head-Lotus.

Just then, the heavy metal door and the back of the bridge swung open, and a distraught young lady entered the room. Her thick hair was up, so Iroh guessed that his great-niece had just merely lost in a fighting match not long ago. He turned his attention back to his game.

"Hello, young one," He greeted her calmly. "Are you having a pleasant time on your first important trip?"

"Great-uncle!" She said, exasperated. "Why must we rely on these...these...these _barbarians_!" She pointed down at the deck, in the general direction of the foreign warriors.

Iroh chuckled. "Why? Do you not like the color of their parkas?" He inquired, a grin on his face. Zephira really couldn't stand when her great-uncle thought that he was being funny, because he never was.

"No, Great-uncle, it's _not_ the parkas." She gritted, rubbing her forehead in frustration. "It's their attitude! They just think that they're _so_ much better than us! It's _disgusting_!"

"Hmm...Well, then this is a very good lesson for you, child. In this world, you will come across many of those whom you would just like to dismember, but remember this: there is nothing gained from losing your head over any small, insignificant matter. Only let your head loose when it's something big." He concluded, his eyes on his board-game, but his attention still focused on her.

Zephira crossed her arms and turned to glare out at the darkening sky. "...There's a storm coming." She said.

Iroh glanced up for a moment, noticing the grey sky. "Hmm...So there is..."

-

**Hey, sorry 'bout taking so darned long to update guys! I don't really have any excuse for it, so go ahead - beat me! ;D**

**I won't be focusing too much on the other two characters (if at all) intil Zephira and Kenai actually meet them, so...Sorry to keep ya waiting.**

**I'll try to be quicker next time...**


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